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traveling by finnair, can a 16 year old travel to st. petersburg, russia alone? I have both russian and usa passports on me and last year when I traveled with my parents back to the us, we asked some airport customs/passport checker lady (excuse that.. i don't know what its properly called) in russia and she said I can travel to Russia alone but I need to be 18 or older to go back to the us alone (my moms traveling there on a later date so that's not an issue) I just want to reassure that that is the case and it hasn't changed within the year

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    As a rule, citizen of a state should be able to enter this state whenever what. I'd say what is more curious is how you will accommodate on having entered, without elders.
    – bipll
    Jul 13, 2019 at 20:43
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    I'm staying with my cousin, she'll be picking me up from the airport, I speak russian very well I can get around fine
    – cupids
    Jul 13, 2019 at 21:36
  • People checking passports are often called "immigration officers" in English. A less specific term is "border guard" or "border officer." Checking passports is strictly speaking not a customs function, but customs and immigration functions can be (and often are, especially at land crossings) combined in one officer.
    – phoog
    Jul 14, 2019 at 15:57

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Yes you can travel alone, but as you have US and Russian citizenship you should note this advice from the US Dept of State Bureau of Consular Affairs https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/RussianFederation.html

“Minors who also have Russian citizenship and are traveling alone or in the company of adults who are not their parents, must carry a Russian passport as well as their parents’ notarized consent for the trip, which can be obtained at a Russian embassy or consulate, or a U.S. notary public. A consent obtained in the United States from a U.S. notary public must be apostilled, translated into Russian, and properly affixed. Authorities will prevent such minors from entering or leaving Russia if they cannot present this consent.”

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  • Strictly speaking, a notary does not provide the consent but only certifies that the signature of the parent signing the consent is genuine. I doubt that's a sufficient quibble for a downvote, however, much less an unexplained one.
    – phoog
    Jul 14, 2019 at 15:59

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